1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a collapsible mid-gate for a vehicle with a headrest and seatbelt fixed to the mid-gate to reduce the weight of a collapsible seat assembly positioned against the mid-gate.
2. Background Art
As the popularity of pickup trucks and vans increases, it has become desirable to provide vehicles that have rearward extended cab portions suitable for carrying more than three passengers. However, this extended cab configuration reduces the load carrying capacity of the cargo box on the rear of the vehicle, such as on a pick-up truck.
It is known in the prior art to provide a hole or passage between the cab portion and the cargo box portion for carrying a somewhat longer load on the floor of a pickup truck. Such a configuration is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,934,727, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. The ""727 patent teaches a pickup truck configuration which is adaptable for carrying a cargo load longer than the cargo box and at or above the wheel covers protruding into the cargo box. The adaptable pickup truck configuration includes a cab portion and a cargo box. A box panel portion is pivotally connected to a front wall of the cargo box and is movable to a generally horizontal position in which the box panel portion partially overlies and is supported by the wheel covers. The cargo box includes a cargo box opening when the box panel portion is in the generally horizontal position. The cab panel portion is pivotally mounted to the cab portion and is movable between a generally vertical closed position and a generally horizontal open position. The cab portion has a cab opening when the cab panel portion is in the generally horizontal position and the cab portion is at least partially aligned with the cargo box opening. Accordingly, the pickup truck configuration is adaptable to carry a cargo load longer than the cargo box through both the cab portion and the cargo box and also can carry a wider load above the wheel covers.
It is desirable to provide an improved vehicle configuration which allows storage of longer loads extending between a cab and a cargo box while reducing manufacturing and assembly costs and weight.
The present invention provides a collapsible mid-gate seat module in which components of the seat assembly are integrated into the collapsible mid-gate to reduce the weight of the seat assembly, and thereby reduce costs associated with manufacture, assembly and installation of the seat assembly. Preferably, the headrest and seatbelt assembly associated with the collapsible seat are secured to the collapsible mid-gate. The xe2x80x9cmid-gatexe2x80x9d also forms the front wall of the cargo box, and the terms xe2x80x9cfront wallxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cmid-gatexe2x80x9d are used interchangeably in this description.
More specifically, the present invention provides a vehicle configuration including a cab portion and a cargo box, the cargo box having a front wall adjacent the cab portion. The vehicle configuration is adaptable for carrying a cargo load longer than the cargo box. The vehicle configuration includes a collapsible seat back positioned against the front wall and structurally supported by the front wall. The seat back is collapsible in a forward direction to a substantially flat position in the vehicle. A headrest is fixed to the front wall. The front wall is collapsible onto the seat back in the cab portion when the seat back is in the substantially flat position such that the headrest is collapsible with the front wall, whereby a longer load may extend from the cargo box into the cab portion on top of the collapsed front wall.
Accordingly, an object of the invention is to provide a collapsible vehicle mid-gate which separates a cargo box from a cab portion of a vehicle, wherein the mid-gate includes seat components fixed thereto, such as a headrest or seatbelt, to reduce the weight and manufacturing costs of a collapsible seat back which is positioned against the collapsible mid-gate.
The above object and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention are readily apparent from the following detailed description of the best mode for carrying out the invention when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.